StrengthIntermediate

Seated Zottman Curl

A curl that rotates at the top, supinated on the way up and pronated on the way down, two exercises in one rep.

GIF · Demo Seated Zottman Curl

What is the seated zottman curl?

Named after 19th-century strongman George Zottman, this curl combines a supinated curl up with a pronated lower. Sitting on a bench keeps the back out of it. You curl the dumbbells with palms up, rotate at the top so palms face down, then lower slowly under that pronated load. You hit the biceps in their strongest position and the brachialis and forearms in their hardest position.

How to do the seated zottman curl

Sit tall and set the grip

Bench at ninety degrees, feet planted. Dumbbells in hand, palms facing forward (supinated).

Curl up supinated

Drive the bells up by squeezing the biceps. Keep the elbows pinned to the ribs, no swing.

Rotate at the top

At the peak of the curl, rotate the wrists until your palms face down. This is the Zottman flip.

Lower pronated, slow

Take three to four seconds to lower the dumbbells with palms down. At the bottom, flip back to supinated and repeat.

Coach tip

Half the people doing Zottman curls go too heavy and skip the slow eccentric. The forearm work only happens if you take four seconds down. Load light, lower slow.

Common mistakes

Swinging the dumbbells. Body English cheats both halves of the rep. Strict elbows, hips on the bench.
Flipping too early. Rotate at the very top, when the biceps are fully shortened. Mid-curl rotation kills the load.
Dropping the eccentric. Pronated lowering is where the brachialis grows. If you can't slow it down, halve the weight.
Going too heavy. Forearm strength caps the lift before bicep strength does. Use about seventy percent of your strict curl weight.

Variations & progressions

Easier

Alternating Zottman

Curl one arm at a time. The other side rests, you get longer time under tension per arm.

Harder

Standing Zottman + tempo

Standing adds a stability demand. Add a 5-second pronated lower for a forearm finisher that bites.

Want pure biceps?

Hammer curl + reverse curl

Two separate exercises do the same job as one Zottman. Pick this if you train arms more than twice a week.

How to program it

Three protocols by goal. Pick one per cycle and aim for progression on load or distance.

Goal	Sets × Distance	Load	Rest
Strength	4 × 6-8 reps	12-16 kg / hand	90 s
Hypertrophy	3 × 10-12 reps with 3 s pronated lower	8-12 kg / hand	60 s
Forearm finisher	2 × 15 reps slow	5-8 kg / hand	45 s

Log every rep

Add the seated zottman curl to your ZON program

Track load, distance and progression in one timeline.

Download ZON →

Seated Zottman Curl FAQ

Why not just do a hammer curl?

A hammer curl trains the brachialis with a neutral grip, but never loads pronated. The Zottman adds that pronated eccentric, which is what builds the brachioradialis and grip-side forearm. One exercise covers what otherwise takes two, with the bonus of training the biceps in their strongest position.

Will it really help my grip?

Yes, especially the wrist extensors that most curls ignore. After four to six weeks of weekly Zottmans, deadlift grip and hangboard endurance both tend to improve. It won't replace dedicated grip work like farmer carries or a fat-bar hold, but it's a strong base-builder.

How does it fit with regular bicep curls?

Treat it as a finisher after your main curl variation. Three or four sets of supinated curls heavy, then two or three sets of Zottmans light and slow. The Zottman adds time under tension and forearm work without adding much fatigue to the biceps themselves.